It refers to a poem in which the city of Kabul was described as having a thousand splendid suns. It also is a symbol for Mariam.
"One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls"
A thousand splendid suns ;by Khaled Hosseini
Setting
The story takes place in Herat, Afghanistan, and Gul Daman, a small village outside of Herat, and then Kabul the capital city from 1958 to the present day. There is also some time in Murree, Pakistan
Gul Daman
Herat
"She said she wouldn't live in her father's empty house either, in the village of Gul Daman , which sat on a steep hill two kilometers north of Herat, Gul Daman is a village of a few walled houses rising among flat kolbas built with mud and straw."(Hosseini p.8).
Kolba
"The small kolba where Mariam would live the first fifteen years of her life.They raised it with sun-dried bricks and plastered it with mud and handfuls of straw.It had two sleeping cots, a wooden table, two straight-backed chairs, a window, and shelves nailed to the wall" (Hosseini p.10)
Character Development
Mariam
"He's going to kill her, she thought he really means to and Mariam could not, would not allow that to happen , he taken so much from her twenty seven years of marriage she would not watch him take Laila too. Mariam steadied her feet and tightened her grip around the shovels handle, she raised.She said his name, he looked up Mariam swung"(Hosseini p.310)
Laila
"This isn't home.Kabul is , and back there so much happening , a lot of it good.I want to be part of it all, i want to do something. I want to contribute. But first i
want to go to Herat"(Hosseinip.346)
Main Conflict
The main conflict in A thousand Splendid Suns is how cruel women are treated in Afghanistan .
"Like a compass needle that points north, a man's accusing finger always finds a woman. Always."(Hosseini p.7)
The struggles women faced in their community during the Taliban restrictions and orders.
"A man's heart is a wretched, wretched thing. It isn't like a mother's womb. It won't bleed. It won't stretch to make room for you."(Hosseini p.274)
Plot Development
. Initiating incident:
Mariam wants her father to take her to his movie theater. When he does not show up, she goes to his house. He refuses to see her, In the morning, Mariam returns home to find that her mother has hanged herself out of fear that her daughter has left her.
" I'll die if you go. The jinn will come, and I'll have one of my fits. You'll see,I'll swallow my tongue and die. Don't leave me, Mariam jo. Please stay. I'll die if you go."(Hosseini p.26)
. Climax:
when Miriam is hanged for murdering her husband ,Because he was chocking laila to death and she had to do something about it.
“Miriam wished for so much in those final moments. Yet as she closed her eyes, it was not regret any longer but a sensation of abundant peace that washed over her. This was a legitimate end to a life of illegitimate belongings.”(Hosseini p.329)
. Resolution:
Taliban is driven out of every major city into the mountains of Afghanistan . Laila, Tariq and the two children return to Kabul. Laila is pregnant once again.
'Where fo we go from here, Tariq? How long do we stay? This isn't home. Kabul is, and back there is so much happeninig, a lot of it good. I want to be a part of it all. I want to do something. I want to contribute"(Hosseini p.346)
Theme
Human Suffering:
Mariam
"But I'm a different breed of man, Mariam. Where i come from, on wrong look, one improper word, and blood is spilled. Where i come from, a woman's face is her husband's business only"(Hosseini p.63)
"He snatched her hand, opened it, and dropped a handful pebbels into it.
Put these into your mouth. Now CHEW"(Hosseini p.94)
Laila
" Laila didnt see the punch coming. One moment she was talking and the next she was on all fours, wide eyed and red faced, trying to draw a breath"(Hosseini p.239)
«A Thousand Splendid Suns»
Meaning of the Title:
It refers to a poem in which the city of Kabul was described as having a thousand splendid suns. It also is a symbol for Mariam.
"One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs
Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls"
Setting
The story takes place in Herat, Afghanistan, and Gul Daman, a small village outside of Herat, and then Kabul the capital city from 1958 to the present day. There is also some time in Murree, Pakistan
"She said she wouldn't live in her father's empty house either, in the village of Gul Daman , which sat on a steep hill two kilometers north of Herat, Gul Daman is a village of a few walled houses rising among flat kolbas built with mud and straw." (Hosseini p.8).
"The small kolba where Mariam would live the first fifteen years of her life.They raised it with sun-dried bricks and plastered it with mud and handfuls of straw.It had two sleeping cots, a wooden table, two straight-backed chairs, a window, and shelves nailed to the wall" (Hosseini p.10)Character Development
Mariam
"He's going to kill her, she thought he really means to and Mariam could not, would not allow that to happen , he taken so much from her twenty seven years of marriage she would not watch him take Laila too. Mariam steadied her feet and tightened her grip around the shovels handle, she raised.She said his name, he looked up Mariam swung" (Hosseini p.310)
"This isn't home.Kabul is , and back there so much happening , a lot of it good.I want to be part of it all, i want to do something. I want to contribute. But first iLaila
want to go to Herat" (Hosseini p.346)
Main Conflict
The main conflict in A thousand Splendid Suns is how cruel women are treated in Afghanistan .
"Like a compass needle that points north, a man's accusing finger always finds a woman. Always." (Hosseini p.7)
The struggles women faced in their community during the Taliban restrictions and orders.
"A man's heart is a wretched, wretched thing. It isn't like a mother's womb. It won't bleed. It won't stretch to make room for you." (Hosseini p.274)
Plot Development
. Initiating incident:
Mariam wants her father to take her to his movie theater. When he does not show up, she goes to his house. He refuses to see her, In the morning, Mariam returns home to find that her mother has hanged herself out of fear that her daughter has left her.
" I'll die if you go. The jinn will come, and I'll have one of my fits. You'll see,I'll swallow my tongue and die. Don't leave me, Mariam jo. Please stay. I'll die if you go." (Hosseini p.26)
. Climax:
when Miriam is hanged for murdering her husband ,Because he was chocking laila to death and she had to do something about it.“Miriam wished for so much in those final moments. Yet as she closed her eyes, it was not regret any longer but a sensation of abundant peace that washed over her. This was a legitimate end to a life of illegitimate belongings.” (Hosseini p.329)
. Resolution:
Taliban is driven out of every major city into the mountains of Afghanistan . Laila, Tariq and the two children return to Kabul. Laila is pregnant once again.
'Where fo we go from here, Tariq? How long do we stay? This isn't home. Kabul is, and back there is so much happeninig, a lot of it good. I want to be a part of it all. I want to do something. I want to contribute" (Hosseini p.346)
Theme
Human Suffering:
Mariam
"But I'm a different breed of man, Mariam. Where i come from, on wrong look, one improper word, and blood is spilled. Where i come from, a woman's face is her husband's business only" (Hosseini p.63)
"He snatched her hand, opened it, and dropped a handful pebbels into it.
Put these into your mouth. Now CHEW" (Hosseini p.94)
Laila
" Laila didnt see the punch coming. One moment she was talking and the next she was on all fours, wide eyed and red faced, trying to draw a breath" (Hosseini p.239)